Rubus ursinus~ First Nations Blackberry

Imagine my delight and surprise, while weeding in the back corner of the garden, to see blackberries growing all round the base of the apple tree! I had no idea they were in there - I thought there was just the usual morning glory and holly bush back there. These berries are not the Himalayan, non-Native species that abound all over the city and beyond. (Rubus discolor) that has "extensive regeneration capabilities." http://www.ufv.ca/biology/biol210/1999/Exotic/Exotic_plant.htm#blackberry These are the more (relatively) gentle, Native species. (Rubus ursinus) It's also known as trailing blackberry, Pacific blackberry and Dewberry.http://www.wnps.org/education/resources/documents/Plant_Cards/Rubus_ursinus.pdf I dug out my copy of "Earth's Blanket-Traditional Teachings for Sustainable Living" by Nancy J. Turner (one of my heroes, who, incidentally, has recently won the Order of British Columbia: http://www.protocol.gov.bc.ca/protocol/prgs/obc/1999/1999_NTurner.htm )http://www.washington.edu/uwpress/search/books/TUREAR.html this is from gardenwiseonline: Trailing blackberry found wide use among British Columbia’s coastal First Nations. Berries were eaten fresh or mashed for drying into cakes. Older red leaves, considered the most flavourful, were picked by some coastal peoples and boiled into a tasty tea. Medicine from leaves and roots treated ailments from dysentery to sores in the mouth. The vines supported and covered various types of food in steaming pits, and berry juice was used as a purple skin stain. Today, trailing blackberry leaves are used in several commercial herbal tea mixes. The plant’s most important contribution is as one of the parents of the delicious loganberry, which arose as a chance cross in Judge Logan’s garden in California.

Read more: http://www.gardenwiseonline.ca/gw/plants/2005/04/01/wild-about-native-blackberries#ixzz0OHtgvldv

I think staining my skin purple with the berries might be fun! and I'm definitely going to watch for older, red leaves to make tea.

going Native

Last summer we ripped out our mini front lawn and put in Native plants: Camas, shooting stars, chocolate lilies, ostrich ferns, Nootka roses, Salal, uva ursi, columbines, Oregon Grape, and Snowberry bushes. it's like a mini Garry Oak meadow, with the Garry Oaks just down the road. I was very fortunate to have grown up beside a Garry Oak forest just behind Cedar Hill School. The forest is sadly gone now - like many small, urban Native patches. The smell of Dodecatheon or shooting stars, is the scent of my childhood. I loved climbing the long, gnarled branches of the dramatic Garry Oaks, and running through the Snowberry bushes, chucking a handful of the white berries at my friend.I remember sitting on the moss in the silent forest, perfectly peaceful and happy there with my friends the trees. Native gardening is water-wise gardening at its best - these plants are best suited to our environment, and can tolerate drier conditions, needing no artificial maintenance. Plus, you don't have to mow your lawn! Not to sound overly preachy, but a lawnmower pollutes the air as much as a car driving 350 miles. A great book resource is Native Plants in the Coastal Garden by April Pettinger. http://www.amazon.com/Native-Plants-Coastal-Garden-Gardeners/dp/0881925829 This book has everything - including how to design your native plant garden, enhancing soil, propagation, meadow combinations, different habitats for a variety of species, and an excellent regional source guide at the back of the book. I'm a member of GORP (Garry Oak Restoration Project) http://www.gorpsaanich.com/- we get together to eradicate invasive species such as English Ivy, giant knotweed, holly, purple loosestrife, spurge laurel, Western dwarf mistletoe, Himalayan blackberry, the dreaded morning glory! and Scotch Broom. They provide you with all the tools you need, you just need to bring some strong arms (and back) and maybe a thermos of hot tea. There's also the Native Plant Study Group with the Victoria Horticultural Society,http://www.npsg.ca/ and the Victoria natural History Society which hosts botany nights. http://vicnhs.bc.ca/ . I hope you have as much fun ripping out your lawn as I did!